2022- Beans List

I'm only growing Blauhilde french beans this year.

Yep - that’s the purple podded ones that I grow. Thanks Bren.

Do either of you find Bauhilde get stringy.  I grew them one year and found they got stringy far quicker than many others.  Maybe I had a duff batch of seed or left them on the plant too long.

I’ll be growing
Runner beans don’t know which variety yet
climbing french beans trenejavec
climbing french beans meuch
climbing french beans Kew blue
climbing french beans Cherokee trail of tears
This lot because I can plant and let them get on with it and harvest all in one go at the end of the season for drying.

No dwarf french beans this year because they live in the tunnel so need watering.

Same as this! Though I'm going to also try about 20 dwarf ones for an early crop in the greenhouse.

Broad beans - masterpiece saved seed
CFB still dithering. Definitely  Hunter, Fasold and one or two others for eating green.  Meuch, Coco Blanc a Rames and possibly one other for drying.
Although Cherokee Trail of Tears was incredibly prolific the dried beans take a whole hour to soften in the pressure cooker, so much longer than others. So cooked mixed beans didn't work, the CToT would  be just cooked but other beans were mush. So might give CToT a miss.
Might not bother with DFB.
May change my mind.

If the dried ones take too long you can pod fresh and freeze.

I'm only growing Blauhilde french beans this year.

Yep - that’s the purple podded ones that I grow. Thanks Bren.

Do either of you find Bauhilde get stringy.  I grew them one year and found they got stringy far quicker than many others.  Maybe I had a duff batch of seed or left them on the plant too long.

Don’t find them particularly stringy. I like growing them because I can spot them easily against the green foliage, so they don’t get forgotten.

Being rather behind the times, I have Scarlet's mixed bean pack from the seed swap a couple years ago. I'll also grow Tenderstar, Vermont cranberry, Tiger, and Borlotti, amount others if I scrounge them out of the depths. I love growing beans as much for the plants as the beans themselves.

I'm only growing Blauhilde french beans this year.

Yep - that’s the purple podded ones that I grow. Thanks Bren.

Do either of you find Bauhilde get stringy.  I grew them one year and found they got stringy far quicker than many others.  Maybe I had a duff batch of seed or left them on the plant too long.

No problem at all with them but I do pick them on the small side. 
This will be the first year I've not grown Scarlet emperor I much prefer the taste of Bauhilde.

Broad beans - masterpiece saved seed
CFB still dithering. Definitely  Hunter, Fasold and one or two others for eating green.  Meuch, Coco Blanc a Rames and possibly one other for drying.
Although Cherokee Trail of Tears was incredibly prolific the dried beans take a whole hour to soften in the pressure cooker, so much longer than others. So cooked mixed beans didn't work, the CToT would  be just cooked but other beans were mush. So might give CToT a miss.
Might not bother with DFB.
May change my mind.

If the dried ones take too long you can pod fresh and freeze.

Sounds like a good idea, thanks for that.

I'm growing a few different ones this year, most of them are new to me:

DFB - Purple teepee (purple), cala d'Or (yellow) and Nautica (green). I've already sown some Tendergreen to grow on in a container for hopefully an early harvest. I'm also growing some Yin Yang for a dry bean.

CFB - a Cosse Violette (purple), Neckargold (yellow), Marvel of Venice (yellow), all to eat fresh pods, Tresnjevac, Meuch, Trail of Tears, Selma Zebra and Tiger (all purple/green striped I think, growing mainly for dry beans, but a couple are dual purpose).

Broad bean - Bunyard's Exhibition, already planted out.

Runner - Gigantes, technically a runner but grown for dry beans.

Writing it all out it looks like a ridiculous amount, but there's room for everything and I'm only growing four each of the CFB for fresh pods and up to eight CFB for the dry beans.

I'm really looking forward to this summer!

I'm so green with envy at you lot with your drying beans - I can't store anything because of a bean beetle; females lay eggs in the flowers and the grubs eat the beans, adults emerging from the dried bean, usually into the storage jar! Even the local Tarbais beans are effected! Yuk

Anyway, this year's list is almost the same as last, only the Maxidor is new.

Broad beans Aqualdulce 6 rows of 1.5m, all autumn sown half in mid october and half in mid November.
Endamame Green Shell

Dwarf French Beans-
Roquencourt Yellow
Beurre Maxidor yellow
Slenderette green

Climbing Beans-
Yard Long
Cosse Violette
Pea Bean

I'm so green with envy at you lot with your drying beans - I can't store anything because of a bean beetle; females lay eggs in the flowers and the grubs eat the beans, adults emerging from the dried bean, usually into the storage jar! Even the local Tarbais beans are effected! Yuk

I find broad beans are attacked in a similar way here. In the past I've found little black beetles in jars looking out though the french beans I grow are not affected. I tend to grow them every other year and as none are grown nearby ususally (I've occasionally seen a field of fava beans but not too nearby).

The soisson beans I grow look very much like Tarbais beans. Don't know how similar they are.